Tufted loop pile fabric

ABSTRACT

A tufted pile loop fabric comprising successive transverse lines of loops of yarn having a bulk equivalent to wool yarn of 16 to 23 yards per ounce and about 35 to 47 pile loops per square inch with certain loops in each transverse line more closely spaced than others to form spaced tightly packed areas which are offset in successive stitches to eliminate the appearance of lines in the fabric.

United States Patent [72] Inventors Elsie Coulson Bloch;

Godfrey Bloch. bqtlLoi 38 East 75th St.. New York, N.Y. 10021 {21] Appl.No. 787,372 [22] Filed Dec. 27,1968 [45] Patented June 8, 1971 [54]TUFTED LOOP PlLE FABRIC 6 Claims, 8 Drawing Figs.

[52] US. Cl 112/410 [51] Int. Cl D05c 17/02 [50] Field of Search112/410, 409, 411, 412, 79, 79.6; 161/62, 66; 28/2, 55.5, 72

[5 6] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,177,833 4/1965 Passonsll2/7 9 3,203,388 8/1965 Parlin et a1 112/410 3,237,578 3/1966 Dietz112/79 3,338,198 8/1967 Short et al. 112/79 3,385,751 5/1968 Willard etal. 112/410X 3,237,578 3/1966 Dietz 112/79 FOREIGN PATENTS 520,373l/1956 Canada 112/79 Primary Examiner.lordan Franklin AssistantExaminerGeorge V. Larkin Attorney-Nathaniel L. Leek ABSTRACT: A tuftedpile loop fabric comprising successive appearance of lines in thefabric.

TUFTED LOOP PILE FABRIC This invention relates to tufted pile fabricsand has for an object to provide a tufted fabric wherein the pile loopsare formed of relatively large yarns and wherein the loops are soclosely spaced that the fabric has an overall uniform pattern lessappearance.

Another object is to provide a tufted loop pile fabric in which theloops are so tightly packed together as to provide a full overallcoverage without apparent lines or breaks.

Various other objects and advantages will be apparent as the nature ofthe invention is more fully disclosed.

In one embodiment the fabric is of the floor-covering type in which thepile loops are composed of coarse yarn such as wool yarn having a weightof I6 to 23 yards per ounce or a synthetic or blended yarn having anequivalent bulk. With yarns of this size the transverse rows of loopsare closely packed when disposed at five or six rows of loops per inch.Successive stitches in the direction of stitching lie in general contactwhen disposed at a spacing of five or six stitches per inch. Thus thefabric may contain from 25 to 36 loops per square inch over its surface.

In accordance with the present invention the formation of lines in thefabric is prevented by providing an irregular spacing in the transversedirection between at least some of the loops. This may be accomplishedby inserting said additional loops in the otherwise closely packed rowsof loops. For example, a pair of additional loops may be inserted atpredetermined intervals in some or all of the transverse lines of loopsor between successive stitches. Altcrnately the loops in each transverseline may be arranged in pairs with the loops in each pair more closelyspaced than the adjacent loops of successive groups.

The result is to crowd additional loops in the otherwise closely packedarea so that the loops are pushed out of line so as to prevent theapparent formation of regular lines or breaks in the otherwisepatternless surface.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a sectional view illustrating the tufting process;

FIG. 2 is a transverse section offabric showing one arrangement of theloops in a transverse line.

FIG. 3 is a section similar to FIG. 2 illustrating a differentarrangement of the loops; and FIGS. 4 to 8 are diagrammatic viewsillustrating various loop arrangements embodying the present invention.

Referring to the drawing more in detail the loop pile is shown as formedon a backing fabric I by stitching through the fabric 10 with a bank ofneedles 11, each of which carries a pile yarn 12 from which a series ofloops is formed.

In operation the needles pierce the fabric 10 from the reverse side topull a loop 14 of yarn through the fabric. The needles penetrate thefabric by a predetermined distance, depending upon the size of loopwhich is to be formed, and the loop is engaged and held by a holdingmember as the needle is withdrawn. The fabric is then advanced apredetermined stitch length and the needles again advanced to form thenext line of loops.

The operation above described is a standard tufting operation and onlyso much thereof has been shown as is necessary for an understanding ofthe present invention.

In accordance with the present invention the bank of needles is socontrolled that each needle is actuated independently so that anyselected group of needles may be actuated in each transverse line ofstitches. Representative mechanism for actuating such needlesindependently is shown by way of example in U.S. Pat. No. 3,177,833dated Apr. l3, I965. It is to be understood however that any suitableactuating mechanism which is known in the art may be used.

In order to obtain tightly packed loops a coarse yarn is used, such as awool yarn of 16 to 23 yards per ounce, or other yarns of natural orsynthetic material having a corresponding bulk. The yarn may be ofsingleply or may be a plied or cabled yarn.

With yarns of this size the loops are tightly packed when five or sixloops are used per inch in the transverse direction with a similarnumber of stitches per inch in the longitudinal or stitch direction.When so disposed adjacent loops in each row are in substantial contactand the loops in successive rows are generally in contact to provide afull overall coverage. In the drawing the loops I4 are arranged intransverse line 15 and successive lines 15 are displaced by a stitchlength such that the loops are generally in close contact.

Although the loops in the lines I5 are closely packed the inventionprovides for packing the loops still tighter by the insertion ofadditional loops 16 in each line 15 or between successive lines or rows.In a fabric having five loops per inch in a transverse line, twointermediate loops 16 per inch may be in or between lines. The number ofintermediate loops may vary but in general should be less than half ofthe number of loops in the lines 15.

The positions of the loops I6 in successive stitches may be selected atrandom so as to assist in providing a patternless appearance.

In the embodiment of FIGS. 2 and 4 additional loops 16 are disposed inthe same transverse lines as the loops 14. Thus each selected line I5may contain seven loops per inch instead of five. The five loops 14 aresubstantially equally spaced with the loops I6 interposed betweencertain of the loops 14 so that the line 15 contains loops of unequalspacing. The loops 16 of successive stitches may be staggered so as toprevent alignment and the formation of apparent lines in the fabric.

In the embodiment of FIGS. 3 and 5 the loops 16 are formed by advancingthe backing fabric I0 a half a stitch length and actuating a selectedpair of needles. For example, using a bank of five needles per inch allfive needles are actuated for each line 15 of loops, and two of theneedles may be actuated to insert the first intermediate loops 16. Insuccessive intermediate stitches a different pair of needles would beactuated.

Alternatively, the loops 16 may be inserted by a separate set of needlescarrying different yarns in which case the loops 16 are placed betweenlines and between rows as shown in FIG. 6 and the yarns of the loops 16may or may not be composed of the same material as the loops 14. In afurther embodiment as shown in FIG. 7, I0 needles per inch may be usedand alternate needles may be actuated in successive stitches so that theloops on successive stitches are staggered. Thus, one line I7 maycontain five loops 18 formed by alternate needles of the bank and thenext line 19 may contain five loops 20 formed by the remaining set ofalternate needles.

In the embodiment of FIG. 8 the loops 2] are shown as arranged in pairsin the transverse direction with the pairs more widely spaced than theloops of each pair. The two loops of each pair may be disposed in thesame transverse line as shown in FIG. 8 or may be staggered insuccessive stitches as shown in FIG. 7. In the latter case the needleswhich form the two loops may be carried on different needle bars and thetwo loops can be placed in closer contact than if the needles were allcarried on the same bar where a certain minimum clearance would berequired between adjacent needles.

In accordance with the present invention relatively large pile yarns areused for making the loops as set forth in the following examples. Theyarns are of multiple plies and are preferably cabled. The yarns may becomposed essentially of wool, but one or more of the plies may be madeof continuous filament synthetic material such as nylon or polypropylenewhich have been artificially bulked, as in a stuffer crimper or ofasynthetic spun yarn such as a yarn spun from acrylic staple fibers.

The fabric may contain from 25 to 36 loops 14 per square inch plus theadditional loops l6 referred to above which may constitute an additionallO or I2 loops per square inch. In order to obtain the desired effectthe pile loops are relatively low, for example being not overthree-fourths of an inch in height. Loops of this height remain closelypacked and retain their relative arrangement in the fabric, arrangedfive loops per inch in the transverse direction with two additionallooper per inch inserted and with five stitches per inch and with a loopheight of three-fourths of an inch.

Example 1 The loop yarn may comprise three-ply yarn composed of threewool ends having a total weight of 16 to 23 yards to the ounce andhaving a ply twist of not over 2 h but preferably 1% turns per inch.

Example 2 An improved effect is obtained by using for the pile yarns acabled wool yarn composed of two-plied ends wherein each of the endscomprises three singles each having'a weight of 125 yards tothe ounceand a twist of from 4 to 4% turns per inch and plied with a ply twist ofthree turns per inch, the two ends being cabled with a cable twist of 1%to 1% turns per inch. The loops are tufted six loops per inch in atransverse line six stitches per inch and with two additional loops perinch between successive stitches, the pile loops having a height ofone-half inch.

Example 3 Instead of using all wool yarns as referred to in examples 1and 2, one or more of the ends may be composed of synthetic yarns suchas continuous filament nylon or polypropylene which have beenartificially bulked as in a stuffer crimper, or of a yam spun fromacrylic staple fibers or of other synthetic staple fibers, the syntheticends having substantially the same overall bulk as the wool endsreferred to above. In this embodiment the synthetic yarn serves tosupport the wool yarns and to improve the wear resistance of the fabric.The synthetic yarn may be of the same color as the wool yarn or may beof contrasting color.

Example 4 The pile loops may be formed of all synthetic yarns of thetype specified in example 3, the synthetic yarns being plied or cabledas set forth in examples I and 2 and having substantially the same bulkas the wool ends or yarns described in the above examples.

We claim:

1. A tufted loop pile fabric comprising a fabric backing layer and pileloops tufted therein, said pile loops being composed of a yarnequivalent in bulk to a wool yarn of 16 to 23 yards per ounce, beingarranged in a series of transverse lines and longitudinal rows andhaving a loop density sufficient to form tightly packed pile loops, saidloops being arranged in groups, which are more widely spaced than theloops in each group, the loops of each group extending through separateneedle holes in the backing fabric and being so closely spaced that theyare displaced from their normal positions in said backing fabric bytheir mutual contact to provide a patternless effect. v g V 2. A tuftedloop pile fabric as set forth in claim 1 wherein the loops of each groupare formed by the same pile yarn in successive stitches, the stitchesbeing so closely spaced that the loops are in mutual contact, successivegroups of loops in the longitudinal direction being offset transverselyto avoid the formation of apparent lines in the fabric.

the loops of each group he in the same transverse line across saidbacking fabric.

4. Atb rie aka forth in claim 31a whic h tii idtips are" 6. A loop pilefabric as set forth in claim 3 wherein the loops of each group areoffset.

1. A tufted loop pile fabric comprising a fabric backing layer and pileloops tufted therein, said pile loops being composed of a yarnequivalent in bulk to a wool yarn of 16 to 23 yards per ounce, beingarranged in a series of transverse lines and longitudinal rows andhaving a loop density sufficient to form tightly packed pile loops, saidloops being arranged in groups, which are more widely spaced than theloops in each group, the loops of each group extending through separateneedle holes in the backing fabric and being so closely spaced that theyare disPlaced from their normal positions in said backing fabric bytheir mutual contact to provide a patternless effect.
 2. A tufted looppile fabric as set forth in claim 1 wherein the loops of each group areformed by the same pile yarn in successive stitches, the stitches beingso closely spaced that the loops are in mutual contact, successivegroups of loops in the longitudinal direction being offset transverselyto avoid the formation of apparent lines in the fabric.
 3. A tufted looppile fabric as set forth in claim 1 wherein the loops of each group liein the same transverse line across said backing fabric.
 4. A fabric asset forth in claim 3 in which the groups are offset in successivestitches.
 5. A loop pile fabric as set forth in claim 3 wherein thegroup are separated by at least one individual loop.
 6. A loop pilefabric as set forth in claim 3 wherein the loops of each group areoffset.